Went on a Royal Caribbean cruise last year which was awesome! We booked via a travel agent.
Looking to go again early next year, would like to know which websites has the best deals on cruises?
Note, can only travel during school holiday.
Currently looking at https://www.royalcaribbean.com.au but was hoping for better discounts.
Is it better to wait for last minute?
Thanks!
Sometimes you will get extra onboard credit if you book with a travel agent.
Ozcruising has always been cheapest in our experience and great service too
Although we have done a total of 2 cruises
I would look at Cruise Guru. There are a number of sites out there that cover multiple ship lines and multiple countries.
Is it better to wait for last minute?
Are you locked into a particular destination/date? If so, then it might risky waiting for a last minute deal. Cruise ships do sell out, especially in holiday peak periods.
If you're flexible on date/desination then waiting for a last minute deal is the way to go.
I found that all the travel agents/websites or even cruiseline direct basically have the same deals. They might offer you different inclusions (on broad credit, drinks packages, etc) at the start, but by the time you adjust for all of this stuff, it's the same. The prices are tightly controlled by the cruiseline. You can probably find a travel agent you will undercut other agents a little ($50-100/person), to get the sale.
Having said that, cruiselines do have sales and offers like "kids sail free" or "buy one get one free" are common. I would start by asking a travel agent when royal Caribbean last had a sale or promo like that and when you might expect to see it again. Then you can assess whether to wait for the next one or book now.
Thanks. Yeah noticed prices are similar across different sites.
So the best approach would be to wait for the cruise line promos.
ATM the promo is 40% off. Guess I should subscribe to their newsletter to get notified of upcoming promos.
ATM the promo is 40% off.
That seems decent to me (basically the same as buy one, get one free - you still pay taxes and fees on BOGO promotions, so it's not exactly 50% off), especially if you've seen the same cruise at full price outside of the promo. I have a suspicion that the promo fares are basically the same, just spun a different way.
So the best approach would be to wait for the cruise line promos.
Another thought is to look at the promos the cruiseline is running in different markets (Eg Expedia US, instead of Expedia Australia). For example, they'll have a different promo for American customers, than for Australian customers. It's not always advisable to book in a different market, but worth checking out the deals on offer.
As always with aggregator sites though, plug the cruise code into the original site and make sure you can't get it cheaper
Came here to see how to book Tom for my kids birthday party…left disappointed.
School holidays are always the most expensive, I would be extremely surprised if there were any rooms left near the sail date. Best bet for a good deal would be booking as soon as the cruise becomes available which is usually 18-24 months in advance, whilst that cruise line has a sale on.
I would be extremely surprised if there were any rooms left near the sail date
Cruise ships have pretty flexible cancellation policies (compared with airlines, at least). So if you're looking for a last minute cabin, you might just be betting on a cancellation.
Check Cruise Guru, they have 30 days to go and 60-90 days to go cruises. Often they are, usually, at a discount.
I know the last minute deals exist, but I've never seen them available around school holidays
Yeah, the problem with school holidays. Not something I need to worry about normally. Is there an interstate option where school holidays don’t align. Just a thought.
how about this?
https://www.cruisesalefinder.com.au/events
also there were few posts about cruise here at ozb, some are from shop rep. maybe you can search and add to your post for others.
gessus so many already discussed.
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/search/node/cruise%20type%3Afor…